"Trump's Obsession with Greenland Traced to Advice from Est?e Lauder Heir Eight Years Ago"

Bolton: "Lauder First Proposed the Idea in 2018"

Testimonies have emerged suggesting that billionaire businessman Ronald Lauder, 82, played a role in shaping U.S. President Donald Trump's hardline stance on incorporating Greenland, a Danish territory, into the United States.

Ronald Lauder. Photo by Yonhap News Agency

On January 20 (local time), the UK’s Telegraph reported, citing former White House National Security Advisor John Bolton, that “President Trump became obsessed with Greenland because Lauder first proposed the idea in 2018.”

President Trump has recently escalated his rhetoric regarding the annexation of Greenland. When asked whether the United States might forcibly occupy Greenland, which is a Danish territory, he responded, “No comment,” leading to interpretations that he is not ruling out the possibility of military intervention.

President Trump argues that the United States must own Greenland in order to counter potential security threats from Russia and China. However, this position has raised concerns that it could destabilize not only U.S.-Denmark relations, but also the entire postwar order between Europe and the United States.

The Telegraph reported that attention is now focusing on Lauder, one of President Trump’s oldest associates, in this process. Lauder is the second son of Est?e Lauder and Joseph Lauder, founders of the American cosmetics company Est?e Lauder. He has maintained a long-standing relationship with President Trump.

According to former Advisor Bolton, in late 2018, President Trump asked in the White House Oval Office, “A prominent businessman suggested that we buy Greenland. What do you think?” Bolton later learned that this businessman was Lauder.

Bolton stated that he did not immediately dismiss the idea of acquiring Greenland at the time. He explained that he already had concerns about security issues in the Arctic region, particularly Greenland, and believed there were strategic interests at stake. He subsequently instructed the White House National Security Council (NSC) to conduct a review of Greenland’s history and the available options for the United States.

However, Bolton emphasized that “there was never any discussion at the time about using military force to acquire Greenland,” adding that “the recent hardline statements are President Trump’s personal issue.”

Lauder, born in February 1944, became the heir to an estimated $4.7 billion (approximately 691.556 billion won) fortune after his older brother Leonard Lauder passed away last year. Within the Est?e Lauder Group, he has primarily been involved in charitable and public sector activities. Lauder’s relationship with President Trump dates back to the 1960s, when they were both students at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. He donated $100,000 (about 150 million won) to President Trump’s first presidential campaign, and President Trump mentioned his friendship with Lauder in a 2017 speech. According to reports from local Danish media, Lauder is known to be part of a consortium of companies investing in water resource exports, hydropower, and aluminum smelting projects in Greenland.

Bolton assessed, “President Trump’s obsession with Greenland is more a matter of ego than strategy,” adding, “The moment he said he ‘psychologically needed to own Greenland,’ everything became clear.” He further commented, “Greenland may benefit President Trump’s ego, but it is undermining the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).”